Albus Potter and the Ghosts of Founders Past
by KEB94
Summary: In his first year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Albus Potter discovered a past hidden by his parents for his own protection. Now, as a second year, Albus is discovering more than he ever thought was possible. Sequel to Albus Potter and the Hero He Knew Not
1. Moral Support

**Chapter One  
Moral Support**

It had been a rather uneventful summer, Albus supposed as he lay in bed reading that Sunday night. Compared to the events of his first year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, nothing particularly exciting had happened.

After their rescue of the trapped Ministry workers, including Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister for Magic himself, Albus, his brother James, friends Scorpius Malfoy and Grace Pennington, their cousins Fred, Roxanne, Louis, Rose and Molly Weasley, and Kreacher, his family's house elf, had each been honoured with their very own Order of Merlin, Second Class, for "stupidity and bravery in the highest regard." His younger sister, Lily, cousin Hugo and family friend Frank Longbottom had been commended by the Minister for their role in the rescue mission. The Hogwarts house-elves had not been forgotten, either; they were rewarded with a brand new kitchen and living quarters, which Kreacher reported they loved dearly.

Of course, there were also the more mundane parts of life - Victoire had graduated from Hogwarts as the top of her class, despite missing months of school which she was abducted, and was now beginning an internship as a Healer; she and Teddy had also finally told Albus' Uncle Bill, Victoire's father, of their plans to marry in the not-too-distant future (the family were very surprised - Bill only blew out three windows this time, as opposed to the twelve his accidental magic destroyed when he first found out the two were dating); James, Fred, Louis and Roxanne had "channeled their built-up energy," as Albus' mother had called it, into something constructive and were enjoying their summer jobs at Fred and Roxanne's father's joke shop, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, where they created and tested new joke products.

Albus' best friend Scorpius had spent a lot of time at the Potter's home in Godric's Hollow while his parents, Draco and Astoria, went on a trip around the world. Consequently, he and Scorpius had spent the majority of the summer together, spending plenty of time with Albus' sister Lily and cousin Hugo, working on their flying skills with Albus' former professional Quidditch playing mother, Ginny, while his cousin Rose (his other best friend) sat firmly on the ground, memorising each page in her textbook word for word.

And, best of all, Albus' father had put himself on desk duty for the duration of the summer holidays, due to injuries suffered during the fight with Rodolphus and the Death Eaters. This, of course, meant that Harry had been around for all family dinners, birthdays and the annual school shopping trip - something that hadn't happened since Teddy's first year of Hogwarts.

"Hey, buddy," Albus looked up, seeing his father standing in his bedroom doorway. "Mum says lights out in ten if you're going to Scorp's tomorrow."

"Sure," Albus replied, closing his book and placing it on his bedside table. "Hey dad," he called out, just before his father moved too far down the hallway.

"Yeah, bud?" he asked, poking his head back in.

"What's it like in there?" the twelve year old asked quietly, sitting up in his bed.

Harry sighed, then walked in and sat down in the end of his youngest son's bed. "Well, Albus, it's not nice, that's for sure. It's dark, dank and in the middle of the ocean."

"So no one can get out?" Albus asked.

"No one but Sirius," Harry replied with a smile. "You'll be ok, Al. Draco's taking you, and the place is full of Aurors. You've got nothing to be scared of."

"Except the murderers, Death Eaters, and all around bad people."

"You'll be fine, Al. It's really great that Scorp's asked you to go with him to see his grandfather."

"Yeah. When going to visit a relative in Azkaban, it's always a good idea to ask your best friend to come, too."

"Goodnight, Albus," Harry replied, exiting the room and turning off the light.

"Good morning, Harry, Albus," Astoria greeted the young man and his father as they exited her living room fireplace early the next morning.

"Good morning, Astoria," Harry replied, smiling. "I've got to go and meet Ron in at the office to go over some reports, so I can't stay. Have a good day, and don't worry," Harry whispered his final sentence to his son, who smiled slightly. "It'll all be fine," he continued quietly. "And don't take anything Lucius says to heart."

"My father has been known to say rude things to and about people, particularly those who look like their parents," Draco commented, entering the living room. "Morning."

"Ah, Draco," Harry replied, shaking his former school enemy's hand. "Have you thought more about my offer?"

"I have. Do you have time to talk at all this evening?"

"Weasley family dinner, the Burrow. Don't worry about it, I'll let Molly know we're having a few extras."

"What's going on?" Scorpius whispered to Albus, who shrugged.

"I think you're coming to dinner."

"Excellent! I love your grandma's cooking!" Albus' blonde best friend proclaimed, moving to the kitchen and taking a seat behind one of the two plates of bacon and eggs his mother had made for the two of them, and began to eat.

"Now boys, are you sure you want to do this?" Draco asked an hour later, just as they were about to apparate to the island of the prison.

"I'm sure, dad," Scorpius replied quietly.

"Me too," Albus replied strongly. "Scorp wants to do this, and I'm not going to let him do it alone."

Draco smiled. "In that case," he held out both of his arms, "let's go."

They landed not thirty seconds later in a cold, dark, misty place; the island in the middle of the ocean, hidden from Muggles with magic, that housed the wizard prison, Azkaban.

"Mr Draco Malfoy," Draco announced himself to the wizard warden guarding the outer wall an only doorway into or out of the prison, "accompanied by Mr Scorpius Malfoy and Mr Albus Potter."

"Whom will you be visiting?" the wizard asked, taking each of the three wands presented, weighing them and filling out some paperwork.

"Mr Lucius Malfoy," Draco replied, a stony look appearing on his face.

"Your arm?" the wizard warden asked Scorpius.

"Sorry?" he asked, terribly confused.

"It has been Ministry policy since the end of the Second Wizarding War to check the left arm of each and every person or creature entering and leaving this Azkaban prison," he replied, motioning for Scorpius to pull up his sleeve and show his left forearm. "It is a measure introduced to check for a Dark Mark, thus not allowing any followers of He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named from entering the prison and instigating a mass breakout, as has been done before."

"He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named?" Albus asked, rolling up his sleeve and presenting his arm once Scorpius had been cleared. "Do you mean Voldemort?"

"Don't speak his name!" the wizard warden hissed, allowing the eleven year old through and muttering under his breath in a language none of the three could understand.

"It's Gaelic," the next person they met, a kind young witch based in the administration department explained. "Don't pay attention to old Mr McLoughlin," she laughed, "no one does. Oh! Your visit room's ready!"

As soon as she said it, another wizard warden appeared and led them through multiple checks and hallways, until finally they arrived in the High Security Visiting Rooms.

"First sign of trouble, boys, and you're quite within your rights to use whatever defensive magic you feel you need," the warden told them, opening the door. "He's in there waiting for you."

"Draco," they heard a cold, drawling voice say from inside the room. "Please, do come in. I don't suppose your brought any-"

The second Scorpius stepped one foot into the room behind his father, Lucius' talking ceased.

"Oh my..." the old man's voice faded off. "You're..."

"Scorpius," Albus' blonde best friend finished for him, stepping further into the room. "Hi Grandpa."

Lucius sat in his chair silently, stunned.

"Dad's promised me for years he'd bring me, and I turn twelve tomorrow, so he though he'd better live up to his end of the bargain - I pass all my classes at Hogwarts, he'd bring me to meet you for my birthday. We would've come tomorrow, but Al and I have been called as witnesses in the trial of a couple of Death Eaters they caught a couple of weeks ago, so..." Scorpius stopped speaking and turned around to where his grandfather as staring. "Oh, right - Grandpa, this is my best friend Albus. Al, this is my grandfather, Lucius Malfoy."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir," Albus managed to stumble out under the old man's scrutinising stare.

"Such like your fathers you are, both of you," the old man finally managed to say, turning back to his son.

"That's it?" Draco asked, unable to believe his ears. "No rant about Harry and how he cost you your House Elf and the war?"

"Harry?" Lucius asked, picking up on the casual use of Albus' father's first name. "Never in your life have you addressed him by his given name."

"We're friends now, dad, believe it or not. As a person who's capable of making his own choices - the _right_ choices, I've realised that all my life it was _you_ driving my hatred. I didn't hate him. I didn't even know him!"

"And I know what the right choices are, now!" Lucius countered feebly. "It's only taken twenty years in this hell hole for me to realise it, but I have!" He sighed, and turned to his grandson. "Scorpius, I am so sorry that I wasn't there to see you grow up. I'm sorry we've never met before. You have no idea how much I wish it was me taking you somewhere special for your twelfth birthday, as is wizard tradition."

"It's ok," Scorpius replied. "Al doesn't have a grandpa in his dad's side, either. But we're doing something really exciting next week with his grandpa Weasley!"

And so Scorpius launched into explaining how Arthur Weasley was going to take the two boys to the movies - or rather, Albus and Scorpius were taking him. He then had the joy of explaining what a muggle movie is - "A moving picture show! Not like the pictures that we have, because it's filmed with a muggle moving camera, on these things called sets the size of the Great Hall, and they show them in these dark theatres with surround sound and the only source of light is the movie screen!" - and the idea of a fast food restaurant - "You drive to a window and order your food at McDonald's, and it comes out hot and fresh in less than a minute!"

Then, they talked about school. How Scorpius' best friends were Albus and his cousin Rose; how they spent most of their time hanging out with the Weasley family, and how they'd spent most of the summer practicing with Albus' mother because they were going to try out for the Quidditch team this year.

Finally, it was time to go.

"My grandson the Gryffindor," Lucius mused as the wizard wardens allowed him to rise from his seat and hug his grandson for the very first time. "This is one for the history books."


	2. The Hearing

**Chapter Two  
The Hearing**

"So?" James asked as soon as Albus and Scorpius walked through the Burrow's front door. "How was it?"

"Fine," Albus replied, following Scorpius into the kitchen, where they found his grandmother cooking lunch.

"Boys! You're back," she sighed with relief, giving each one of her famous bone-crushing hugs.

"What do you mean, 'fine'?" James continued badgering them, having followed them into the kitchen. "You went to the most feared wizard prison on Earth, and all you have to say is it was 'fine'?"

"It was fine, James!" Scorpius yelled, his anger causing Molly Weasley's pots to jump around and clang. "What more do you want us to say?"

"Scorp-"

"-Forget it, Albus," the blonde cut his best friend off, storming through the kitchen door and out into the yard beyond.

"Now look what you've done!" Albus yelled at his brother, who cringed.

Although James knew he could give back exactly what Albus was currently directing at him, he had trouble finding the guts to do it - with the combined tempers of both Harry and Ginny, Potter, Albus Severus was a force to be reckoned with when he allowed his temper to fly.

"James, you get out there right now and apologise to dear Scorpius!" Molly reprimanded her grandson who, again, cringed.

"I'll go," Rose, who along with her brother Hugo and cousins Molly and Lucy had run downstairs when they heard the shouting begin, told her grandmother. "He won't be able to get near enough to say anything."

It was true that Rose and Scorpius had a special love-hate connection, and had done since the day they met. Albus, however, suspected that the two, although friends just as they were with anyone else, had a special deeper connection with each other. Once the kitchen cleared out, he shared this theory with his grandmother, who smiled knowingly.

"When one's angry, the other one is the only person who can calm their temper or talk them down," Albus explained, watching his grandmother's face closely. "They seem to, I dunno, get each other in some way that no one else can."

"Around here, Albus, we call it fate," she whispered her reply, winking as she did so. "You should've seen your Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione when they were your age - they couldn't stand each other! The best of friends, but always at each other's throats. And, they always seemed to have a special connection that no one else had."

"Grandma, are you saying...?"

"All I'm saying is you're a very perceptive young man, Albus," was the only reply he received.

The next morning, although filled with great anticipation, also gave Albus a sense of unexplainable foreboding.

"We'll be in a courtroom full of Aurors and Ministry officials, the Death Eaters will be locked up in the chairs and they'll have a heap of wands pointed at their faces. What's to worry about?" Scorpius attempted to reassure him, stuffing his face with Grandma Weasley's scrambled eggs on toast the whole while.

"Do you ever stop eating?" Rose asked him indignantly.

"Calm down, Rosie, there's nothing to worry about," Scorpius' reply - and casual use of a nickname Rose had banned them from using at age three - caught Albus off guard.

'Rosie?' he mouthed to Lucy, who shrugged.

'No idea,' she mouthed back.

"This is going to be a very long day," Albus muttered, pushing away his half-full plate and resting his head on the table.

"Albus," Harry calmly stepped into the hallway down near the Department of Mysteries, where Albus and his cousins had snuck into the Ministry mere months ago, "we're ready for you now."

"What do I do if they break free and try to attack me, dad?" Albus whispered, following Harry through the door.

"That's not going to happen, Al."

"But just say it did?"

Harry sighed and bent down so he was at the same height as his youngest son. "Then you'll be fine, just as you always are - you'll cast a shield charm, and get you and Scorpius safely out of here."

"Ok," Albus replied, calming down slightly but fingering his wand, which was sitting in his trouser pocket. "I'm ready."

"That's my boy," Harry replied, standing back up and leading Albus through to the witness stand, his hand in his shoulder in a silent sign of support.

"Please state your name and residency for the court," Albus looked to his right and saw the calm face of Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister for Magic. At the sight of his father's close friend, Albus drew a deep breath and found himself suddenly calm.

"Albus Severus Potter, resident of Godric's Hollow, England," Albus replied in a steady tone of voice, looking directly into the Minister's eyes.

"Thank you, Albus," Kingsley replied, giving him a single nod of the head as a sign of confidence. "Now, Albus," Albus's dad had already told him about this - since he was only twelve, and not the one in trouble, the court would be addressing him by his first name, so as to make him feel more comfortable in the unfamiliar setting, "you were here on the night of the tenth of May last year?"

"Yes, sir," Albus replied, nodding. "I was here with my brother, cousins and two of my friends."

"Could you explain to the court why you and the group were here?" Kingsley asked him calmly.

And so Albus recounted the story - of the threat made against his family, of how they found out it was real and of his cousins' kidnapping. He told them of Molly's escape and return, of her message to give to Harry, and of their discovery in the Chamber of Secrets. He told them of the attempted kidnapping of his brother and cousins, and of their finding out the location of the girls. Finally, he told them of their daring plan to escape Hogwarts' wartime precautions, of how they went to Italy and then to English Muggle Parliament, not forgetting Kreacher's vital role. He explained their getting into the Ministry and finding their family members; and their getting out and bringing the house elves and Aurors with them. He finished with Rodolphus' final threat, the threat which he knew would, one day soon, come back to haunt them.

"Albus, you've mentioned several underground, suspected and known Death Eaters. From the images on this wall, could you identify them?"

"Um..." he looked through the first row, and saw the heavily scarred face of a man he remembered all too well. "That one, there on the right hand side - he's the man who tried to cast a killing curse at me." The Ministry officials hurriedly scribbled notes on the man and his crimes onto pieces of parchment littering the room. "That man, that one and that one - they were all holding the girls in El Magio Villagio...That man cast the cruciatus curse on my best friend's mum, Astoria Malfoy." Again, the court scribes hurriedly copied down the testimony. After picking out a few more faces he recognised, Albus stopped at a picture of an inmate of Azkaban prison. "That's him. The one all behind this." He looked to Kingsley, who nodded in encouragement. "That's Rodolphus Lestrange."


	3. Hogwarts Again

**Chapter Three  
Hogwarts Again**

"Two of the men we all picked out were the ones on trial," Albus explained to Scorpius a week and a half later, "but dad was only allowed to tell us yesterday, after they were given their sentence. They're going to Azkaban for a very long time, and the others we named each have a 5000 galleon price tag on their heads."

"Wow," Scorpius replied, looking out the window of the compartment they'd managed to score to themselves aboard the Hogwarts Express. "Do you think they'll catch any of the others?" he asked, facing his best friend.

"Are you kidding? Of course they will!"

"Albus, they're Aurors, not superheroes," Rose replied quietly, standing up from her seat. "Maybe they will catch them, and maybe they won't. We've got to accept that there's a chance they may be on the run forever."

"Way to be the bearer of bad news," Albus muttered, looking moodily through the window to the wide open countryside.

"Where are you going, anyway?" Scorpius asked her, just as she went to step through the compartment door.

"To sit with some of my other friends," she replied, walking away.

"What other friends?" Scorpius asked Albus, dumbfounded.

Albus shook his head. "No idea."

"Where is she?" Scorpius asked as they exited the train at Hogsmeade Station and headed towards the carriages for the very first time.

"Calm down," Albus replied, stepping into the carriage, "it's Rose. She'll either be with us or the cousins because, let's face it, we're the only ones who can put up with her!"

"She's not _that_ bad," Scorpius reasoned, sitting on one of the benches. "Never mind - here she comes now!"

"Is that...?" Albus began, not believing his eyes.

"It is!" Scorpius exclaimed. "It's Lucy and Grace!" Then, realising what had happened, he turned to face his best friend. "Since when does she have other friends?"

"Since now, apparently," Albus replied, busying himself with examining his wand.

"Hi, guys," Rose greeted them happily, as though nothing abnormal had happened. "Why are you looking at me as if I've got two heads?"

"Because you've got two heads," Albus replied, hardly able to keep himself from laughing.

"WHAT?" Rose screamed, waving her hands around and finding each of her hands coming into contact with a nose - her nose - above each of her shoulders.

"Look, Jay - it worked!" they heard someone yelling through the distance.

"JAMES!" Rose screeched, leaning out of the carriage and glaring daggers at her cousins with all four eyes.

In a stroke of luck for the Gryffindor fourth year in question, the threstrals pulling the carriage he was seated in chose precisely that moment to begin the long trek up to the Castle.

"I'll kill him," Rose growled as she exited the carriage behind the two boys, having already commandeered Scorpius' cloak to wrap around her heads.

"It could be worse," Scorpius mused.

"How?" she demanded in reply.

"He could've given you three." Albus couldn't help himself - he sank to the ground in a fit of laughter.

"It is not funny!" Rose yelled, ripping Scorpius' cloak from her heads and whipping it towards the body of her cousin, which was convulsing in his fit of laughter.

"Oh come on, Rosie," Scorpius stepped in, grabbing her arm and pulling her away from Albus. "Here comes James now. Why don't you go try out some of your new offensive spells?"

"James!" she yelled, racing behind Albus' older brother through the large oak doors and into the Entrance Hall of Hogwarts Castle.

"No running in the hallway!" Albus and Scorpius heard Professor Slughorn yell as they stepped over the threshold. "Ah, Albus. What has gotten into your cousin today?"

"James put some sort of spell on her," Albus explained. "She's grown a second head."

"She's what?" the Professor asked, obviously not believing what he was being told.

"Grown a second head," Scorpius repeated, stepping backwards to avoid being bowled over by James, who was sprinting away from Rose.

"Oh dear," the Professor replied, shaking his head. "I bet he's spent all summer thinking of that one."

"Probably," Albus replied, side-stepping a jinx Rose had aimed at his brother.

"When the spells start flying, I'm obligated to step in," the Professor told the boys, stepping forward and disarming both Rose and James, who was starting to send spells her way. "Ok, you two. James, put her back to normal. And since this is the first day of school, I'll give you one day's grace - any more of this as of tomorrow morning and you'll both have detention. Understand?"

"Yes sir," the two chorused, James simply to humour him and Rose genuinely apologising.

"Ok. Now off to dinner, the lot of you!" Professor Slughorn declared, shepherding the remaining students milling around the doors through the Entrance Hall and into the Great Hall, where the feast would occur.

"Good evening, students," Professor McGonagall stated, standing up in her place at the centre of the staff table after both the Sorting and the Feast. "To our new students, welcome. And to our returning students, welcome back to another year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry."

Albus smiled - truly smiled - for the first time in months. He knew in his heart of hearts that Hogwarts is where he belonged.

"As this year marks the twentieth anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts, and the end of the Second Wizarding War, several changes have been made in this year's schedule."

Albus looked to Scorpius, confused. Scorpius simply shrugged.

"To put your mind at ease, Mr Potter, the Quidditch schedule will not be interrupted," Professor McGonagall spoke directly to James, who visibly calmed. "However, History of Magic classes will be."

The entirety of the school groaned. Since Dean Thomas had taken over the position of History of Magic Professor last year, the students had actually enjoyed the subject for the first time that anybody could remember. Dean smiled at the students, tears in his eyes.

"Not to worry, Professor Thomas will still be teaching-" Professor McGonagall was cut off by a wave of applause and cheering from the Gryffindor table. "Thank you, Potter and Weasleys," she told the Albus' brother and four cousins, who had begun the cheer, sternly. "As I was saying, Professor Thomas will still be teaching History of Magic. However, he will be teaching with the aid of those who survived the Battle."

The Great Hall was entirely silent. Next to none of them had ever heard a survivor talk about the Battle of Hogwarts, or the war in general before.

"Also," Professor McGonagall continued as though nothing were unusual, "Mr Filch, who has recovered after last year's incident-"

"-Damn!" Albus distinctly heard his brother mutter.

"-has asked me to remind you that any student unaccompanied by a teacher is forbidden from entering the Forbidden Forest," she stated slowly, again looking to Albus' brother and their cousins. "There is a reason for its name. He has also asked me to remind you that all Weasley's Wizards Wheezes products are banned from being brought onto school grounds."

Finally, she stood up and looked around the room. "I know you are all looking forward to this year of learning. Let's make every day count."

"I've never looked forward to my bed so much," Scorpius sighed, standing up and stretching. "Albus?" he asked his best friend, now thoroughly confused. "Al, what's going on?"

"Guys - look," Albus pointed their attention in the direction of the portrait of Godric Gryffindor, which hung on the wall opposite the far end of their table.

"What?" Rose asked, glancing at the picture and looking back again.

"Gryffindor's portrait," Albus replied.

"What about it?" Scorpius asked him, turning to make his way out of the hall.

"It's stopped moving."


	4. Collected

**Chapter Four  
Collected**

"Don't let it worry you," Rose said as the three made their way to their first lesson of the year - which, as it happens, was History of Magic. "So the portrait didn't move. It happens all the time."

"Yeah, mate," Scorpius jumped in, desperate to get back on Rose's good side after insinuating that she had no other friends. "It was probably nothing."

"Yeah," Albus replied half-heartedly, although already drafting a letter to his father in his mind's eye.

_"Anything out of the ordinary,"_ Harry had said, _"anything at all - even the most mundane thing you think I'd never be interested in - put it in a letter and tell me. Trust me, it'll put your mind to rest."_

"Good morning, you three!" Professor Dean Thomas exclaimed, meeting them at his classroom door, having walked the other way down the corridor. "Early to class, I see."

"Rose wanted to make sure we start the year off on a good note by arriving early to all of our classes," Scorpius explained, walking through the doorway.

"It's not going to last," Albus whispered as he passed his Professor. Professor Thomas barely managed to stifle his laugh, but managed to pass it off as a particularly violent cough.

"Did you have a good summer, Sir?" Rose asked him, taking her usual seat in the front row and looking expectantly at the boys until they sat either side of her.

"Splendid," Professor Thomas replied, sitting on the front edge of his desk. "I spent the summer in Albania with a few of my friends, doing some research for this year's classes."

"Albania?" Albus asked, suddenly interested in his cousin's conversation with his teacher. "Dad had to go on an emergency trip to Albania a few weeks ago."

"Yeah," the educator replied sheepishly, absentmindedly rubbing the back of his neck, "we ran into a spot of trouble with a few Death Eaters part way through our trip."

"What happened?" Scorpius asked, suddenly enthralled by the story.

"We almost stumbled across something that the Death Eaters have been hiding for years, it seems," Professor Thomas replied, brushing the comment off. "Good morning Joseph, Marcus," he continued, greeting the two Hufflepuff boys that had just entered the classroom. "Please, join us. We were just discussing our summers."

The two boys moved forward and took the front row seats beside their three Gryffindor counterparts. "I had a pretty boring summer, actually," one, Marcus, offered. "My dad took me to see a couple of Qudditch games, but that was about it."

"Same here," the other, Joseph, replied. "My mum took my sister and I to Hogsmeade one day."

_Wow_, Albus thought, not believing his ears. _These boys had a _really_ boring summer_.

"There's more to that story than Professor Thomas told us," Rose mentioned to the boys as they left the History of Magic classroom and made their way down to the dungeons, where they would partake in their first Potions class for the year. "I'm sure of it."

"Let it go, Rose," Albus sighed, walking ahead of his two best friends. "There's a reason he changed the subject. He obviously doesn't want to tell us, so we shouldn't go digging to find it."

He heard her sigh, and new he'd got himself in her bad books. _That's just fine_, he thought icily. _I don't want to deal with her right now anyway_.

"Ah! Albus, m'boy!" Professor Slughorn exclaimed as soon as Albus walked through the door. "Professor Slytherin has been looking forward to having a class with you!"

"Is the rest of the school aware of Professor Slytherin's arrival yet, sir?" Albus asked, setting himself up around his cauldron as his classmates slowly filed into the room.

"Not just yet, m'boy," Professor Slughorn replied, lowering his voice. "The other Professors and I thought it would be the perfect time to announce the Professor's arrival at the Minister's Grand Feast on Friday night."

"The Minister's Grand Feast?" Scorpius asked, finally arriving and setting himself up between Albus and Rose, who was now not speaking to her cousin. "Why is the Minister coming?"

"Official business for the twentieth anniversary, young Mr Malfoy," the Professor replied, stepping back and clasping his hands together. "I'll be having a few get togethers throughout the year for some select students," he told the three Gryffindors. "Look for my owl."

Scorpius looked to Albus, confused. "What was that about?"

Albus sighed, as did Rose. "We've just been collected."

"Collected?"

"What Albus means," Rose interrupted with a thorough explanation, "is that we have just joined the Slug Club."

"The Slug Club?" Scorpius repeated, almost disgusted.

"The Slug Club," Albus and Rose replied in unison.

"Now take out your wands," Professor Jacobs instructed in Transfiguration. "Potter!" Albus looked up reluctantly, already very aware of what was coming next. "The incantation to change a goblet into an animal?"

Albus, who was stressing over the portrait already, had had it with Professor Jacobs picking on him all class, and finally cracked. "Wingardium leviosa?" he asked sarcastically.

You could almost see the steam coming out of Professor Jacobs' ears. "Detention! Friday night, my office, 6 o'clock. Every minute you are late is another hour you must stay."

"Friday isn't going to work for me, Sir," Albus replied, standing up with his wand in his hand. "I'm a required guest of the Minister's feast."

"OUT!" Professor Jacobs roared, pointing to the door. "GET OUT OF MY CLASSROOM!"

"Gladly," Albus replied, picking up his bag and marching out the door.

As soon as he'd rounded the corner at the other end of the hall, the full impact of what had just happened hit him. "Oh no," he moaned, sliding down the wall.

"Hey!" he heard a muffled voice coming from his backpack. "Hey! Al!"

"Sirius," he breathed in fear, fishing around his backpack for the portrait frame that was only one of many back at the house. "Sirius, what are you doing here?"

"First things first - get your butt outta there. I heard what happened after you left from Rose's portrait. Take the secret passageway behind that tapestry and do exactly what I tell you."

"But Sirius-"

"-Now," Sirius replied, putting his serious face on.

"Ok, I'm going," Albus replied, standing up and hurrying through the passageway.

"Good. Now turn left up here," Sirius instructed. "And right around that corner."

"Sirius, where are we going?"

"Keep your voice down, and take these stairs. The ones going down, not up!"

"Why am I in the Entrance Hall?" Albus asked the portrait, who didn't answer.

"Take the stairs to the dungeons. Stop at the picture of the bowl of fruit, and tickle the pear."

"Tickle the...?"

"Yes, Al, tickle the pear. Don't ask questions."

"Yes sir," the second year replied sarcastically, tickling the pear. "Hey! It's a handle!"

"Don't yell it out for the whole world to hear! Now get inside. Quickly! Before someone sees you!"

Confused, Albus turned the handle and opened the door. "Whoa! Is this the kitchen?"

"Certainly is, Sir," a tiny young house elf replied, stepping forward and bowing so low that her nose touched the floor. "Can I get you anything, Sir?"

"No, thanks. I'm not entirely sure why Sirius led me in here. And my name's Albus, by the way. Albus Potter."

An echo of his surname rang through the room as the house elves rapidly whispered to each other.

"Forgive me, Albus Potter," the young elf he was talking to breathed, bowing again, this time with an air of reverence. "Are you sure I cannot get you something? Tea? Treacle Tart?"


	5. The Million Galleon Question

Hi everyone! Thank you again for taking the time to read this story and I'm glad to hear that many of you are enjoying it! I'm so sorry it's been so long since I updated, I've been going crazy with course work and life in general, but I've finally done it! More to come soon :)

**Chapter Five  
The Million Galleon Question**

"Some Treacle Tart would be amazing, thank you!" Albus replied, sitting at the end of one of the four large tables opposite the kitchen itself. "Why am I here, Sirius?"

"Well, you needed to get out before Professor Jacobs lost his head, and this is the one place no one would ever think of look," the portrait of Sirius replied, shrugging.

"And why is it so important I got out of there before-"

"-Mr Potter!" a stern voice called from the doorway.

"Oh no," Sirius muttered, beginning to slowly back out of the picture frame Albus had propped up against his bag.

"Not so fast, Mr Black," Professor McGonagall continued, walking towards the table.

"But how-"

"-I have eyes inside the castle too, Mr Potter," she replied, sitting opposite him at what he now realised was the Gryffindor table. Confused, Albus made to say something but was interrupted. "You've missed three classes, Mr Potter. We were beginning to worry."

"'We'?" Sirius asked, sitting in an armchair painted on the canvas.

"I shared the Headmistress' concerns," came a voice from the portrait. "It took all of thirty seconds to identify where you'd gone."

"It's ok, Severus," Albus said kindly. "You can come out now."

"No thank you," the portrait's voice replied, fading as Sirius poked his head through the edge of the frame.

"The coward's gone into his Headmaster portrait!" the former prisoner exclaimed venomously.

"That's because he's convinced you'll try to hex him."

"Too right I will, Lily! He ratted out Albus!"

"Mr Black, may I remind you that we could have just as easily had the ghosts search the castle," Professor McGonagall cut in, taking a sip of her tea. "So, Albus," she continued kindly, "what happened today? It's not like you to walk out in the middle of a class."

"In his defence, Professor, Jacobs told him to get out," Sirius jumped in.

"I was not asking you, Mr Black. I'd quite like to hear the story from Mr Potter."

"Well, he – sorry, Professor Jacobs – he'd been … I don't know, Professor."

"Sorry? What had he been doing all lesson?" Professor McGonagall asked, now interested.

"Nothing," Albus replied rather quickly. "Would you mind if I went up to the library? Molly promised she'd help me with my potions homework."

"Of course," Professor McGonagall replied, again, with a kind tone of voice. "If this happens again, Mr Potter – you being asked to leave Professor Jacobs' class – you are to come straight to my office."

"Yes, Professor," Albus replied, gathering his things and stuffing Sirius unceremoniously into his backpack.

"Ow!" he vaguely heard the voice from the portrait complain. "Quills should _not_ be poking me there!"

"There you are, Albus!" Albus' cousin Molly Weasley greeted him quietly as he joined her at a table in the far corner of the library, having just left Professor McGonagall in the kitchens. "You gave poor Rose and Scorpius quite a scare when you walked out of Transfiguration, you know," she said, placing the ancient book she was reading carefully on the table in front of her.

"I know," he replied, taking out his potions book. "I don't know what happened. I just got really, really angry and I lost it."

"I know," she replied calmly. "It happens sometimes, Albus. Sometimes you're so stressed or worried that the smallest things tip you over the edge and you let your temper get the best of you. It happens to all of us." She stopped talking and looked at him very closely. "So, you want to tell me what's bothering you?"

That evening, Albus found himself sitting between Dominique and Molly in the middle of the Gryffindor table, surrounded by the rest of the cousins.

"I took the opportunity to do some research whilst Al and I were still in the library," Molly said, pushing her glasses up further on her nose. "When a portrait stops moving-"

"-It means the piece of the subject is no longer preserved in its painted likeness," Dominique cut in. "We know, you've already told us."

"But you don't seem to understand what I'm saying!" Molly protested, leaning in closer to the others. "If the portrait is no longer moving, then-"

"-Godric Gryffindor is no longer in his portrait," James finished for her, hardly believing it himself.

"And the million galleon question is," Fred summed it up, "where in the name of Merlin's pants is he?"


End file.
